Intellectual Property Law Clinic

Student interns in the Intellectual Property–Patent Clinic assist faculty and students at Illinois Institute of Technology, University of Illinois at Chicago, and other tech-transfer or school-related companies or institutions on selected "real-life" patent-related matters. Student interns work with and are supervised by adjunct clinical faculty, who are patent lawyers at the downtown Chicago office of international law firm K&L Gates LLP, in providing patentability opinions, performing clearance searches, and guiding clients through the range of intellectual property legal issues that typically face start-up inventors and companies.In addition, the student interns make presentations to Illinois Institute of Technology faculty and students on patent issues in an attempt to educate and market the IP-Patent Clinic to the faculty and students

Prerequisites: Prior completion of Patent Law is preferred but not required. Because the IP-Patent Clinic experience will involve working with technology, it is very strongly recommended that students possess a technical background, and preference will be given those students in selecting clinic interns.

The IP-Patent Clinic is a three-credit course that will be offered in the fall and spring semesters, and approximately 8 students participate each semester.